Energy In Motion (EIM) plans to introduce two electric heavy commercial vehicles over the next 15 months as it begins local assembly at its new manufacturing complex in Talegaon, Pune, Managing Director Narendra Murkumbi said on Wednesday.
The company will expand beyond its existing Ashwa 4x2 electric tractor with a heavy electric tipper for mining and road construction applications and a rigid-body truck for conventional freight transportation.
"We have two more products lined up in the next 15 months," Murkumbi said at the inauguration of the electric vehicle and battery pack assembly facility, adding that the vehicles would enable EIM to address additional segments of the heavy commercial vehicle market.
EIM, which had initially relied on imported electric trucks, is shifting to domestic assembly and production at the new facility. The plant has an annual assembly capacity of 5,000 vehicles, which can be expanded further.
The manufacturing complex at Ambi, near Talegaon, covers more than 35,000 square metres and brings together truck assembly, battery-pack manufacturing and battery testing operations.
According to the company's presentation, the truck assembly unit occupies more than 19,000 square metres, while the battery-pack assembly facility covers 10,920 square metres and has an annual capacity of 2.4 GWh, equivalent to approximately 6,000 battery boxes.
EIM has a technology licensing and supply partnership with China's BAIC Foton Motor for heavy commercial vehicles. The six-year exclusive agreement covers the assembly, marketing and distribution of Foton commercial vehicles above 18 tonnes in India.
Murkumbi said the technology underlying EIM's existing electric trucks had been operating in China for more than four years.
The company's current offering, the EIM-Foton Ashwa 4x2 electric tractor, operates in the 55-tonne gross combination weight (GCW) category and is available with 282-kWh and 350-kWh battery configurations. The truck primarily caters to container movement, port logistics and other heavy freight applications.
The upcoming tipper will allow EIM to enter mining and construction applications, while the rigid-body truck will target a broader range of cargo transportation requirements.
New Battery Technology
Alongside vehicle production, EIM is preparing to assemble higher-capacity lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery packs at its Pune facility through a partnership with China's CATL.
Murkumbi said the company's existing 282-kWh battery provides a driving range of around 150 km, while its next-generation battery will offer approximately 42% more capacity and a range exceeding 200 km per charge.
"And the new one, which we call the Luna battery, will be assembled here right in this complex," he said.
According to the presentation, the upgraded battery system has a capacity of approximately 400.5 kWh and uses CATL's CB7T0 cells and L324D06 battery-pack platform. EIM estimates a battery life of around 7.5 lakh km.
In July, EIM signed an agreement with CATL for the supply of 500 MWh of LFP battery cells and pack kits. The company said the newer cells offer improved energy density and cycle life compared with its earlier battery technology.
The higher-capacity packs will be integrated into swappable battery boxes designed for heavy commercial vehicle operations in India.
While battery-pack assembly will take place locally, EIM will continue to depend on imported cells and pack kits supplied by CATL.
₹60-Crore Battery Testing Facility
EIM is also developing battery-testing infrastructure within the Pune complex to support the validation of battery packs for heavy commercial vehicles.
The facility, operated in collaboration with Automotive Test Systems (ATS), covers 4,983 square metres and involves a Phase 1 investment of ₹60 crore, according to the company's presentation.
It will house around 50 test benches covering electrical performance, simulation, thermal management, mechanical durability, environmental conditions and safety testing.
The facility is designed to evaluate battery performance under demanding operating conditions, including high temperatures, mechanical shocks, vibration and other stresses associated with heavy commercial vehicle applications.
The testing infrastructure is expected to support EIM's battery development and validation activities while also providing testing capabilities for the wider electric vehicle industry